Don't Joke About Jada's Medical Condition, Will Smith Says In Apology
NDTV
Jada Pinkett suffers from alopecia, which causes hair loss - she revealed in 2018 that she struggles with the condition
Will Smith, Best Actor and also worst moment at the Oscars this year, publicly apologized to comedian Chris Rock for having struck him live on camera. "Violence in all its forms is poisonous and destructive. My behaviour at last night's Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable," the 53-year-old actor wrote in an Instagram post, "I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong." He also, however, made it clear that some subjects are off-limits for humour - Will slapped Chris, who was presenting an Oscar, after the comedian joked about Will's wife Jada's hair.
Jada Pinkett suffers from alopecia, which causes hair loss - she revealed in 2018 that she struggles with the condition and wears her hair shorn almost to the scalp. It's unclear if Chris Rock was aware of Jada's medical condition; on stage at the Oscars, he quipped, "Jada, can't wait for GI Jane 2," a reference to the 90s Demi Moore film in which she plays a Navy SEAL and wears her hair cropped. The joke triggered Will Smith into slapping Chris Rock and then yelling, "Keep my wife's name out of your f*****g mouth."
Later, in his Instagram post, Will Smith made it clear that while he was fair game, Jada's alopecia was not. He wrote: "Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada's medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally."
Read Will Smith's post here: